KULT - "OSTATECZNY KRACH SYSTEMU KORPORACJI" (1998)

"Ostateczny krach systemu korporacji" is widely considered the last of the four classic albums released by Kult (the others being "Posłuchaj to do Ciebie", "Spokojnie", and "Tata Kazika"). Their tenth studio effort, it contains sixteen songs and runs for 75 minutes. 

Nearly every style of the Nineties is explored by this encyclopaedia of sounds. 

"Goopya peezda" is a disturbing hybrid of industrial rock and jungle music; "Grzesznik" is a crazy folk-rock tune with hip hop beats, electric organ and brass instruments; "Z archiwum polskiego jazzu" is an acid jazz track with a reckless double bass line; "Poznaj swój raj" is an hardcore punk assault; "Dziewczyna bez zęba na przedzie" mixes an alt-rock verse with a nu metal refrain; "Komu bije dzwon" is an epic folk ballad, one of most touching songs Kazik has ever written. There are some refined ska-pop numbers also, such as the hit singles "Lewy czerwcowy" (most of the people know it as "Panie Waldku") and "Gdy nie ma dzieci".

There are not updated sale figures for this album, but we know it was a success, having sold over 100.000 copies in its first six months of release.

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KULT - "SPOKOJNIE" (1988)

With a further improvement in their sound, Kult reached the peak of their first phase.

An entire universe is summarized in these tracks. The hit single "Arahja" is a psychedelic anthem characterized by a dynamic electric organ sound (somehow pre-dating the Madchester movement); "Patrz" is a pyrotechnical ska-pop song; "Jeźdźcy" is the melancholic moment of the album (with a striking arrangement for sax, vibes, and keyboards); "Tan" is a twelve minutes colossus which mixes jam and song-form, new wave and world music; "Wstać!" is its opposite: a choral punk assault which lasts less than two minutes.

By listening to it you would easily understand why "Spokojnie" is widely considered a classic of Polish rock music. It is also the best selling Nowa Fala record of the late 80s.

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KULT - "POSŁUCHAJ TO DO CIEBIE" (1987)

In the late 80s a second post-punk movement conquered Poland. With an impressive series of no. 1 albums and singles, Kult is the most popular and long-lived of these bands.

If their debut album, "Kult" (1986), was slightly naive, this second effort is a huge step forward. The production makes the difference: the sounds are much deeper, especially the rhythm section, which sounded like a demo on the previous album. 

A more professional approach also helped their songwriting to mantain a solid focus, generating moments such as the triumphant reggae-rock of "Wódka" (originally titled "Na całym świecie źle się dzieje koledzy", transl. "Things go wrong all around the world, friends"), the funky assault of "Post", and the atmospheric mid-tempo of "Hej, czy nie wiecie". The latter was a big hit in Poland, expecially because of the anti-regime lyrics (its chorus screams "Hey, don't you know you have no power in this world?")

The historic line-up of this album is composed by Kazik Staszewski (vocals & keyboards), Janusz Grudziński (guitars & keyboards), Ireneusz Wereński (bass guitar, previously a Brygada Kryzys member), Paul Szanajca (sax), and Tadeusz Kisieliński (drums). 

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